Love padlocks at N Seoul Tower Chinese tourists pose for photos in front of the ‘Trees of Love’ padlock formations at N Seoul Tower atop Namsan Mountain in Seoul on July 22. There are seven tree-shaped frames covered with padlocks at the base of the tower. (photo: Jeon Han) N Seoul Tower is…
Learn about Korea through postage stamps The Korea-Made Character Series is a set of specially designed postage stamps printed yearly since 2011 by the national postal service, Korea Post. So far, this series has printed stamps featuring popular Korean cartoon characters like Pororo, Pucca, Robocar Poli & Larva. The annual plan for special postage stamps is…
The Gospel Trail: from Myeongdong Cathedral to St. Andrew Kim Dae-geon’s tomb The Archdiocese of Seoul dates back to the 17th and 18th centuries, when Catholicism and religious belief began to spread with the study of Western learning. Yi Seung-hun, the first Korean convert, christened as Peter in Beijing, returned home in 1784…
Early explorations of Korea Before the opening of Korea to western diplomats and businessmen in the 1880s, there were two visits that, rather than helping prepare for the opening, encouraged the Koreans to turn their backs on the outside world. The first was that recorded by the French artist Jean Henri Zuber, (1844~1909)…
Impressed by Korean’s open attitude: Liesbet Ruben Every year, the National Museum of Korea (NMK) invites a certain number of international curators and museum experts to visit Korea, in an attempt to experience diversity and to share information about their exhibitions. This year’s first guest has been Liesbet Ruben from the Netherlands. She has been working…
Ancient king comes to light after 1,500 years In 1921, during the routine upkeep of a local resident’s home, a golden crown, or geumgwan, and numerous associated relics were found in Gyeongju, Gyeongsangbuk-do (North Gyeongsang Province), the ancient capital of the Silla Kingdom (57 B.C.-A.D. 935). This was the first-ever discovery of such Silla era…
Late Silla stone chamber found in Jeolla A stone chamber believed to be the remnants of a tomb and earthenware artifacts, all dating from the Silla Kingdom (57 B.C.-A.D. 935), have been found in Namwon, Jeollabuk-do (North Jeolla Province), announced the Cultural Heritage Administration (CHA) on July 9.This is the first time that…
Kongjwi and Patjwi: Cinderella tale offers insight into old Korea The story of Kongjwi and Patjwi is a beloved and popular Korean folktale made around the late Joseon period. The folktale is known to exist in 17 variant forms, and the novel version was first published in 1928. Often compared to the Western…
Singin’ in the room noraebang nights Ask a Korean the biggest cultural oddities facing a Westerner in his country, and you will likely hear a commentary on terrifyingly spicy food, unfailing reverence for the elderly or the perils of trying to master chopsticks. Ask a Westerner, however, and the list transforms. What the…
World mailbox tour via Facebook ‘Korea Clickers,’ the Facebook page run by Korea.net, was inspired by Korea Post’s recent Facebook photo of an extra large mailbox, into asking a question to its 130 thousand Korea fans on July 9. Korean mailbox posted on the Facebook of Korea Post (photo: Lee Jaeseok) We asked “How…
